thanks all for your kind replies! It's been a rough few days, but Gracie seems to be responding to the meds pretty well - she's eating and using the box and cleaning herself and purring, so she can't be feeling too horribly, I think - thank goodness! Despite my constant torture (I took her to another vet for a second opinion yesterday and it turned out to be a VERY bad experience! The cab ride was horrific for poor Grace and the vet herself was very negative and kept telling me stories about other very sick cats and how awful it was for them and how their owners should have been more responsible and had their cats put to sleep! I got home from that and cried for hours! I mean, I know that some day I will have to make that decision, and I know it'll wreck me when I do, but right now I think Gracie is just not that bad off, and it was NOT the sort of thing I needed to hear. She also wasn't exactly gentle with the physical exam... all in all: Very Bad!) Gracie still seems to love me, so for that I'm grateful.

About her diagnosis: she did have x-rays and an ultrasound as part of her initial workup. The x-rays weren't too helpful since they couldn't see her lungs through the fluid, but the U/S didn't show any masses or significant heart problems. Her blood work was also fine, except for showing a little bit of dehydration - which she seems to have recovered from based on how much nicer her coat feels & that she just seems a little more 'filled-out'. Right now I'm just praying that the meds will work and that she'll continue to get better!

One more question: it takes her few minutes to recover from having a poop - the pushing and not being able to breathe while pushing really take it out of her. She leaves the box and spends the next few minutes laying down and mouth-breathing. I've mentioned this to my vet and he didn't seem overly concerned as long as she takes the time to rest and recover and as long as she DOES recover, but I'm wondering if the other chylokitties experience anything similar?

And finally: I don't have any pics of Gracie on this computer (it's borrowed until I finish upgradning my own PC) but I will try to post one as soon as I can!

Thanks again for your input and help! It really means a lot to be able to "talk" to people who understand that she's *not* "just a cat"